Academic | Entrepreneur | Adventurer

Hi, I'm Rick Winfield!

I'm a life long entrepreneur, adventurer, world traveler, and I recently became a Dad. A descendent of Caribbean Pirates (Dad's side) and a Chinese Student/Businessman (great-granddad on Mom's side), I grew up in the suburbs of New York City but have now lived on the West Coast for almost half my life. I currently reside in Reno, NV. I find myself spending a lot time exploring what it is that makes adventurers, explorers, and entrepreneurs "tick." If you've got an (ad)venture you think I might be interested in, drop me a line!

Academic

I am currently an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship, Marketing, and Finance at Sierra Nevada College. I have also taught as an Adjunct Professor at University of Nevada Reno and Truckee Meadows Community College. I received my Bachelor's Degree from the University of Pennsylvania, majoring in Linguistics with a minor in Cognitive Science (graduated cum laude). Nearly 20 years later, I earned my MBA from Columbia Business School's Global Asia program (a partnership with London Business School and Hong Kong University), earning the Award for Academic Excellence. I am currently pursuing my Phd, focusing my research on start-up accelerators.

Entrepreneur

I started my career in the mid-90s as a technologist and self-taught web developer, working my way up to CTO of a Seattle based startup. After surviving the .com bubble burst, I founded ComputerTrainingSchools.com, a pioneer in the online lead generation space. Five years later the site was acquired by Quinstreet (NASDAQ:QNST). I also was co-founder and Director of Technology of Veskritec, Inc., an early startup incubator/accelerator, which helped found four lead generation businesses (several successful exit). I've been a proponent of "lean startup" principles since before "lean startup" was a buzzword. Today I am an active angel investor/advisor.

Adventurer

The Alps, Andes, Antarctic, Appalachian, Atlas, Cascade, Caucus, Coast, Chugach, Dolomites, Dubai (indoor), Hokkaido, Kootanies, Monashees, Ortler, Rockies, Selkirks, Sierra, Skeena, Southern Alps(NZ), Tetons, and Wasatch - I've skied steep couloirs, big volcanoes, and deep powder on all seven of the world's continents. I'll use lifts, cats, and helicopters, but climbing skins, crampons, hiking, and rappelling are my favorite ways to access the top of a line. I've also swum in four of the world's five oceans, visited 26 countries, and 49 of the 50 US States. My favorite place to ski is La Grave, I met my wife and got married at Squaw Valley, and I got engaged at Burning Man.

Founder

Companies That I've Founded/Incubated

Teaching

Schools I've Taught At | Entrepreneur In Residence

Companies I've Worked For

Precedent Systems, Inc. | Marah Wood Holdings

Companies I've Invested In

I Participate in Equity and Debt Financing

Education

Schools Attended

Consulting

I currently have limited availability for consulting projects. Areas I can help with include lean startup methodologies, idea generation and analysis, developing company/product launch plans, digital marketing (SEO, SEM, and "growth hacking"), as well as technology strategy. Feel free to email me if you have a project you need help with, I also have a large network of industry experts that I can refer you to if we are not a match.

Speaking/Judging

I enjoy speaking in front of an audience and have given guest lectures to undergraduate and MBA classes, spoken to Entrepreneurship Clubs and Associations, presented at Ignite, participated in panel discussions, and have judged business plan competitions and Startup Weekend. I enjoy speaking about entrepreneurship, innovation, entrepreneurial marketing, and skiing (sometimes all in the same 5 minute presentation).

Investing

I source the majority of my investments through referrals from people I know and trust. I'm also building a portfolio of investments using AngelList (focusing on 1-strong Founding Teams, 2-strong co-Investors, and 3-large, scalable business opportunities). I tend to invest in areas that I "know." Feel free to email me if you have an investment you think I would be interested in, but please note that these usually aren't high priorities for follow up from me.